1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to external aircraft stores such as airborne rocket and missile launchers, and more particularly, to a means and method of jettisoning a missile launcher from an aircraft without also jettisoning expensive electronic equipment along with the launcher.
Standard practice in the design of rocket and missile launchers carried by aircraft has been to make them lightweight and strong, yet low in cost so that in the event of aircraft combat involvement, for example, the launcher or pod may be jettisoned in order to substantially lessen aerodynamic drag and weight. Now with the existence of high technology range finders, fuzing systems and other electronic devices installed in the launcher pod, there is much expensive equipment lost when it is decided that the launcher must be jettisoned. The problem of boresighting each new launcher, when installed, must also be taken into account at the time of reloading after the previous pod assembly has been jettisoned.
2. Description of the Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 3,185,035 to Gregory-Humphries discloses a standard rocket launcher attached to an aircraft wing-mounted pylon. A supplementary launcher is removably fit on the standard launcher for the purpose of carrying a larger number of rockets. The launchers are not jettisonable.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,167,278 to Roberge shows a mounting probe suspended horizontally beneath an aircraft wing for providing easy installation of an ordnance carrier (launcher) thereon during air-to-air transfer.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,710,678 is typical of those which show a jettisonable pod for aircraft carried rockets.
The concept of providing an adjustable (boresightable) "hardback" on which to install launchers or pods is also believed to be known. If and when the launcher is jettisoned, so is the hardback.